Every door in my house looks like this due to past owner pets and a bit of my own cats helping the damage along. It’s been a project on the list for years and now i’m finally getting to it.
I, of course, started with looking at new doors. But my doors are a non-standard size as far as I can tell (29.75in x 79.25in) so I think I would have to get the cut custom to fit?
I then looked into things like peel and stick wallpaper and the like but I don’t know if that will look good, or lay properly flat since it’s so damaged and, of course, my cats just need one swipe to damage it yet again.
Then I looked into the wood filler, which I didn’t know was a thing until I saw a comment on a door repair video. But I’m not sure if that will work here?
So that’s all that I’ve researched but I’m unsure as to what the best approach is, any help would be appreciated. I would really like to make as little waste and spend as little money as possible, while still have staying power to the repair. How would you go about it? Any tips/tricks?
Thanks for the help!
If you get a wood filler get an epoxy based wood filler. You may need to order it online, I’ve had trouble finding it at the normal hardware stores.
It’ll last forever and be more durable than the wood itself. Might be overkill for an indoor fix, but it’s not any pricier. I’ve used it to repair wood rot on outdoor window fixtures and it works great.
Just a word of advice. It’s tempting to add a bunch because you’re going to sand it down level anyway. But it takes FOREVER to sand if you don’t have a sander so try to make it level as best you can while you’re applying it.
If you’re going to paint them then it might be worth trying to fill the missing areas and sand. I don’t think you could ever expect to repair this so it can be stained though. Only a new veneer over the entire side could do that and that’ll likely cost you more than a new door.
Hanging a new door is easier than you might think though, especially if it’s pre-hung.
I might check salvage yards and see if you can find doors in your sizes. Most doors can be cut at least an inch or even two off the sides or bottom.
It looks like they’re veneered. The way I’d go about it would be giving them a sand/removing the remaining veneer and then either paint them or apply new veneer.
This is definitely the way I’d go about it too, but on the off chance OP tends more towards the crafts side of the spectrum, make it into a fun art project?
If you screw it up you’re right back to the beginning, remove, sand, start over.
Yeah I was thinking about getting a bit wacky with it, but I’m not sure if my husband would be on board. But I’ll start with removing the vaneer and sanding down, definitely. Thanks!
I would sand 'em down, apply filler (bought, or you could, as I did, use some of the dust + wood glue) to where ever there’s a big scratch or chunk missing, and for the final step, apply varnish or something like linseed oil (if the wood has a nice grain). Just did all that in an old flat my family and I are currently renovating! Hope that helps. :)
Awesome! Thank you!
I forgot to mention: If the old veneer is coated with kinda thickish laquer, you should try how sanding works; if it’s hard work, you could try a hot-air gun on it. You can then either scrape the old coating off while it’s hot, or burn it kinda crispy - it should make the sanding-down process a lot easier.
But wear proper masks for all those steps and make sure there’s enough air flow!
Edit: Be careful not to burn the wood if you try that method! :P
It’s gonna be hard and time-consuming work if you do it like I did, but the result is worth it.
